Biogeographic patterns of the Crustacea (Decapoda and Stomatopoda) are given for the tropical Pacific, based on recent taxonomic studies combined with emergence of regional databases. Conclusive results are still difficult ...

Woody species diversity and the spatial distribution of trees in a subtropical evergreen broadleaf forest on a silicate substrate, Okinawa Island, were investigated to determine the forest’s architectural stratification. ...

Dispersal distance of planktonic larvae of coral reef organisms is influenced by their ecological characteristics and environmental factors such as current flow and physical structure of reefs. This study reviews the degree ...

Photosymbiotic ascidians inhabiting subtropical waters tend to have gonads in spring and summer, whereas those in tropical waters are usually sexually mature year-round. We studied the seasonality of sexual reproduction ...

Organic pollutants have detrimental effects on the environment. In this study we evaluated the current status of contamination with organochlorine pesticides (OCPs), organo-tin compounds (OTCs), and polychlorinated biphenyls ...

Reef-building corals inhabit a variety of aquatic habitats with a range of light conditions. Because the coral host depends on photosynthetic products assimilated from endosymbiotic algae, reef-building corals have to cope ...

Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) have been promoted as effective management tools to protect biodiversity at local and global scales, but there remains considerable scientific uncertainty about effects of MPAs on species ...

Genetic diversity and population structure of Japanese populations of the oval squid, Sepioteuthis cf. lessoniana, were compared with populations from Taiwan and Vietnam using nucleotide sequences of the mitochondrial DNA ...

Phylogenetic relationships were inferred for populations of the Ryukyu five-lined skink Plestiodon marginatus, a species showing an extraordinary distribution across the Tokara Tectonic Strait. Phylogenetic analyses of 809 ...

Indigenous forests in remote islands are generally impoverished of secondary successional tree species. After canopy disturbances, the same indigenous tree species seem to resume dominance by a process known as ‘‘autosuccession’’ ...

Reproductive biology and early development of two species of sleepers, Eleotris acanthopoma Bleeker, 1853, and E. fusca (Forster, 1801), were investigated in streams on Okinawa Island in southern Japan. Gonadal examination ...

The Quaternary terrestrial turtle fauna of the Ryukyu Archipelago was reviewed on the basis of recently excavated fossils, as well as literature information. As a result, five extinct species (four geoemydids [Cuora sp., ...